Functional impairment but not metabolic syndrome is associated with depression in older Taiwanese: Results from the social environment and biomarkers of Aging study

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the association of metabolic syndrome, metabolic disorders and functional impairment with depression in older (≥54 years) adults. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. SETTING: Data of this study were from the Social Environment and Biomarkers of Aging Study (SEBAS) in Taiwan (2000). PARTICIPANTS: A national representative sample of persons 54 years of age or older in Taiwan (N = 1023). RESULTS: Results showed that the presence of any number of metabolic disorders without functional impairment was not associated with depression. However, the presence of functional impairment regardless of the number of metabolic disorder was associated with a significantly higher risk of depression after adjusting for confounding factors (OR = 5.13, 95% CI = 2.13-12.36) (p<0.05). The presence of a basic Activities of Daily Living (ADL) dependency was significantly associated with a 1.45 times higher likelihood of depression (OR = 1.45, 95% CI = 1.17-1.79) (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that functional impairment, but not metabolic syndrome or metabolic disorders, is associated with depression in older adults. Metabolic syndrome/disorders do not necessarily affect patient's psychological health unless it is accompanied with functional impairment.